Google Ventures’ Rich Miner joins Crittercism’s board, as the app monitoring firm nears 1B devices

App performance monitoring startup Crittercism is getting a huge vote of confidence from the cofounder of Android.

Rich Miner, one of Google Ventures’ most prominent general partners and the cofounder of Google’s mobile OS, is joining Crittercism’s board, the company told VentureBeat. He’s replacing former Google Ventures partner Wesley Chan on the board, who recently left the firm to work on his own startup.

The board swap is well timed, as Crittercism says it’s also close to 1 billion mobile devices with its platform, up from 500 million one year ago. The company’s technology lets app developers track app performance precisely, allowing them to see what’s causing slowdowns and crashes. Most users likely have no clue that they’re running an app monitored by Crittercism, but you may have noticed some of your favorite apps crash a lot less now.

The company’s customers include AT&T, NPR, and Netflix. Andrew Levy, Crittercism’s cofounder and CEO, tells me a new (currently unnamed) partner will expand the company’s reach to a billion devices monthly by the end of March.

In an interview, Miner noted that he isn’t coming into his board role with any real agenda. Instead, he plans to listen and advise the company when necessary.

“There’s a vacuum, except for these guys … there really isn’t any mobile-first crash and app management platform out there,” Miner said. Crashlytics, a similar app monitoring service, was acquired by Twitter last year.

The relationship between Miner and Crittercism has practically come full circle: He introduced the company when it launched at our MobileBeat conference back in 2011.

“We really haven’t engaged much with carriers or OEMs — as we push more and more into employee facing apps, Rich’s background will be especially helpful,” Crittercism CEO Levy said in an interview.

Google Ventures has also had a close relationship with Crittercism since its launch, most recently leading its $12 million funding round last year. The San Francisco-based company has now raised around $19 million and has more than 60 employees.